Bernard "Buzz" Hartnett

Lancaster, WI – Bernard “Buzz” Hartnett, age 90, passed away at Orchard Manor on December 1, 2023, reunited with his wife Beverly who passed just two days prior. After 70 years of marriage, Buzz didn’t make Bev wait long. Though, who knows, maybe she still gave him a little grief for making her wait around.

Accentuated by passing away within days of each other, Buzz and Bev had a type of love that is rare these days. Love that doesn’t try to change the other person but accepts them for who they are. Love that doesn’t shrink in the face of adversity but grows stronger. Love that is comfortable with long countryside drives without radio or cell phones. Love that lasts.

The son of farmers Noel and Essie (Dobson) Hartnett, Buzz was born in Ellenboro Township on October 22, 1933. He married his wife, Beverly “Bev” (Davies) Hartnett, on August 21, 1953.

The couple had two children, Bruce and Becky. Buzz farmed while raising the kids, instilling in them a love for the country. Bruce had a successful rodeo career, accomplishing what every son wants – making his Dad proud. In Buzz’s later years, he worked at the Grant County rodeo, hauled cattle, and handed out Blow Pop suckers as a Lancaster bus driver. He loved driving kids. But the real reason to drive the bus may have been to spend more time with his daughter Becky who taught at Winskill. She never missed a day saying hello to her Dad after school.  

Buzz loved holding babies. Though the records are unofficial, it is safe to say he held his grandchildren and great grandchildren more than any other family member. Then, when they got a little older, he taught them many things, including that they shouldn’t “wrastle” in the house.

He is survived by four grandchildren and eight great grandchildren, Michelle (Jake), Brienna, and Wren Hipenbecker of Fennimore; Miranda (Eric), Lydia, and Grace Fuerstenberg of Bloomington; Brandon (Carrie), Quinn, and Kennedy Hartnett of Platteville; and Casey (Emilie), Maxwell, and Rebecca Schwab of Evanston, IL. Buzz was preceded in death by his parents, Noel & Essie (Dobson) Hartnett; his sisters, Ivanell Tanner, Irene Peterson, and Aloa “Sweetie” Winkers; his children, Bruce Hartnett and Rebecca “Becky” (Hartnett) Schwab; and his granddaughter, Carrie Hartnett.

Funeral services will be held for both Buzz and Bev jointly at 11:00 A.M. on Friday, December 8, 2023, at the Martin Schwartz Funeral Home and Crematory in Lancaster with burial and a luncheon to follow. Visitation will be held from 9:00 A.M. until time of service at the funeral home on Friday morning.  The Martin Schwartz Funeral Home and Crematory in Lancaster is entrusted with his services.